Bill Chappell

Bill Chappell is a writer and producer who currently works on The Two Way, NPR's flagship news portal. In the past, he has edited and coordinated digital features for Morning Edition and Fresh Air, in addition to editing the rundown of All Things Considered. He frequently contributes to other NPR blogs, such as All Tech Considered and The Salt.

Chappell's work at NPR has ranged from being the site's first full-time homepage editor to being the lead writer and editor on the London 2012 Olympics blog, The Torch. His assignments have included being the lead web producer for NPR's trip to Asia's Grand Trunk Road, as well as establishing the Peabody Award-winning StoryCorps on NPR.org.

In 2009, Chappell was a key editorial member of the small team that redesigned NPR's web site. One year later, the site won its first Peabody Award, along with the National Press Foundation's Excellence in Online Journalism award.

At NPR, Chappell has trained both digital and radio staff to use digital tools to tell compelling stories, in addition to "evangelizing" — promoting more collaboration between legacy and digital departments.

Prior to joining NPR in late 2003, Chappell worked on the Assignment Desk at CNN International, handling coverage in areas from the Middle East, Asia, Africa, Europe, and Latin America, and coordinating CNN's pool coverage out of Qatar during the Iraq war.

Chappell's work for CNN also included producing Web stories and editing digital video for SI.com, and editing and producing stories for CNN.com's features division.

Before joining CNN, Chappell wrote about movies, restaurants and music for alternative weeklies, in addition to his first job: editing the police blotter.

A holder of bachelor's degrees in English and History from the University of Georgia, he attended graduate school for English Literature at the University of South Carolina.

After weeks of anti-U.S. rhetoric that included denunciations of President Obama, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has announced "I have separated from them," using his remarks during a state visit to China to seek closer ties with that country.

In the latest of a string of rulings on Florida's death penalty law, the state's Supreme Court says juries should be unanimous in imposing a death sentence — something the recently revamped law does not require.

As of Monday, U.S. citizens who travel to Cuba will no longer be limited to bringing back goods worth up to $400 — including $100 worth of tobacco and alcohol. President Obama ordered the changes, which also clear the way for Cuban-origin pharmaceuticals to gain U.S. regulatory approval.

Instead of those special quotas, normal limits on Americans' importation of foreign products for personal use will apply.

Promising information that is more standardized and complete than has previously been available, Attorney General Loretta Lynch says the Department of Justice will collect data on the police use of deadly force in the line of duty.

At least 18 deaths are now associated with Hurricane Matthew, the powerful storm that made landfall in South Carolina as it made its way up the Atlantic coast Saturday. After more than a foot of rain fell in several parts of North Carolina, Gov. Pat McCrory says eight people died as a result of the storm. Authorities say five people are missing.

"As the sun rises in North Carolina and the blue sky returns, our state is facing major destruction and sadly, loss of life," Gov. Pat McCrory said Sunday. "This storm is not over for North Carolina."

A week after a deadly stampede brought anti-government protests and violence to a fever pitch, Ethiopia declared a six-month state of emergency Sunday. Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn says the declaration is necessary for the government to protect both property and citizens' lives.

A collision between a transit train and a maintenance train injured nearly 30 people east of New York City Saturday night, as a Long Island Rail Road train derailed near New Hyde Park. Hundreds of passengers were aboard the LIRR train when the collision occurred around 9:10 p.m. ET.

"The silver lining is, we're fortunate that more people weren't seriously hurt," Gov. Andrew Cuomo said during an early-morning visit to the scene Sunday. He added, "The damage to the train cars is extensive."

An attack on a funeral hall killed 90 people and wounded more than 560 in Sanaa Saturday, Yemen's rebel government says. The Saudi-led coalition has promised to conduct an immediate investigation into the airstrikes.

"We're mobilizing to support health facilities deal with the influx of dead and wounded," the Red Cross delegation in Yemen says, adding that it's sending 300 body bags and medical supplies to help cope with the violence's effects.

As fears are confirmed about the extent of the damage Hurricane Matthew inflicted on Haiti — with a government agency saying 470 people died in one district alone — USAID is airlifting more than 480 metric tons of relief supplies to the small nation.

An official in Haiti's Civil Protection Agency tells the AP that in addition to the 470 deaths he's confirmed in one district, "The death toll is sure to go up."

Saying that it's "an absolute priority for the entire Olympic Movement" to protect clean athletes, top officials from the International Olympic Committee and major sports federations are agreeing to relinquish more control over catching cheaters to the World Anti-Doping Agency.

Making landfall Saturday, Hurricane Matthew brought floods and strong winds to South Carolina's Lowcountry region, pouring rain into an area that now faces a dangerous storm surge. As of 11 a.m. ET, the storm's center was around 55 miles south-southwest of Myrtle Beach.

South Carolina, California, and Virginia are among the states that snapped up high-profile sporting events after the NCAA decided to relocate seven championship events from North Carolina over the state's transgender law.

The events include early rounds of March Madness; North Carolina had already lost the NBA's All-Star Game because of its controversial HB2 law that limits civil rights protections for LGBT individuals.

The state of Vermont and the city of Phoenix have joined the list of places that now call the second Monday in October Indigenous Peoples' Day, in a show of momentum for honoring indigenous people on the federal holiday that's named for Christopher Columbus.